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How to Improve Quickly as a New Recruiter

If you’re new to the recruitment industry – or know someone else who is – we’ve got some invaluable tips on how to accelerate the pace so you’re overtaking long-serving recruiters to become the top biller!

Anyone who’s ever worked in recruitment will be familiar with the steep learning curve you’re faced with during your first few months in the industry. There’s a lot to take in, and expectations are high, but if you’ve got the right attitude there’s no reason why you can’t accelerate your progress quickly and start billing within your first month as a recruiter.

So, what’s the secret? Here are our top tips!

Start your day early

There’s no escaping the fact that if you want to succeed in this game, you’ll need to work harder than you’ve ever done at the beginning. For the first few months, you’ll need to put in the graft to reach candidates during all hours of the day as you’ll be working hard to prove you’re an asset to candidates and clients.

It’s a good idea to start your days in the office as early as possible, as this allows you to get up to speed with job board latests and catch up on emails before the day has even really begun. You’ll feel better for it come lunch time and you’ve already got a handful of top-quality CVs in your inbox!

And if you're interested in receiving the latest tips and resources on of these areas, subscribe to the Firefish blog using the subscription box at the bottom of this page.

Learn and live your company story

Why does the agency you work for exist in the first place? What recruitment challenge does the company directly address? From day one, you need to live and breathe your company’s story and make it an integral part of how you go about your daily work.

The quicker you get to know this, the better you’ll be at your job. It’s those recruiters who really understand and embrace company story that are most confident in doing their job and achieve the best results.

Build your valuable network

A strong recruiter network – that is, outside of your client and candidate networks – is an invaluable resource for any recruiter, but particularly so for those just starting out in the industry.

Your first step to building your network should be to join all the LinkedIn groups in your specialisation so you can tap into what they’re discussing and get to know your sector thoroughly (it’s worth checking out recruitment Facebook groups too!).

Next up, connect with all the recruiters you know on social media: LinkedIn is a goldmine for new recruiters as it’s the platform that recruitment influencers and thought leaders engage with other recruiters on. Go on an following spree of all the big-names like Greg Savage, Hung Lee,Louise Triance and Mitch Sullivan (to name a few – here’s our ultimate list for more!) and pay close attention to the content they post. They’ll be providing valuable insights about the industry and trends that you won’t get to see elsewhere.

Know your candidate market inside and out

Meet with at least three candidates a day at the beginning and learn as much as you can about their jobs and experiences in their industry. There’s no better resource for getting to know your sector than straight from the horse’s mouth! And while you’re at it, make sure you pull these tricks out the bag early on to ensure your candidates keep coming back to you again and again.

Work your CRM and read over all the available notes in there to help you understand the type of jobs the company recruits for inside out. What makes a good developer over a bad one? What constitutes a purple squirrel in your sector? Use your CRM as a way to shortcut the market and learn from your colleagues. Just remember to repay the favour by inputting your own useful notes when you become an expert too!

Overcome your phone fears

It’s no exaggeration to say that the vast majority of your workload as a recruiter will entail you being on the phone – whether this is to check in with clients, keep in touch with candidates or make prospecting calls. Therefore, facing any initial fears you might have about picking up the phone is critical if you want to get anywhere in this business.

But don’t worry – we know this can be a particular challenge that a lot of recruiters face, so we have a whole load of helpful content to guide you through making the most of your phone calls.

Develop a thick skin

To really excel in this industry, you need to face up to one thing: You’ll be faced with rejection and have to deal with difficult candidates and clients on a daily basis, so the quicker you accept this and learn not to take things personally, the more success you’ll have.

So as negative as it sounds, you need to be prepared to get let down, and often at times when you least expect it. However, the tough times only make you stronger, and if you last more than six months and have made at least four placements in that time - recruitment is in your blood!

Never stop learning

The most successful recruiters understand that you can never know everything about this industry (or any industry, for that matter!). If you have the hunger to learn something new each and every day, you’re likely to excel at recruitment and make it a career you love.

Watch and learn from a top biller in your office and try to work out what they’re doing that’s different to how others are working. Soak up everything they do, but try not to ask too many questions or you’ll slow them down!

It’s a good idea to also reserve time in your diary every day to read industry-relevant content and insights. It’s your job to be knowledgeable and adaptable, as both the candidate market and recruitment best practices change and evolve over time.

If you’re serious about a career in recruitment, take these points on board and you’re sure to become a top performing recruiter in no time. Next stop: setting your own personal KPIs to help you reach that top-biller status! Download the eBook below for practical tips on how to do this.

About the Author: As Content Editor-in-Chief, Katie oversees all things blog-related at Firefish Software. If she’s not planning, reading, writing, or thinking about writing recruitment blogs, you can normally find her moaning about the Glasgow weather and planning her next escape to the sunshine!

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